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If there are a few things we expect of February, it’s that it’s the shortest month with varied days of 28 or 29, Valentine’s day is celebrated, and that it’s time for the country to honor Black History Month.

The Office of Intercultural Relations here at Defiance College holds many events that celebrate Black History Month. The office is offering two movies showcasing African American’s who fight for what is right and just with the film Harriet and Just Mercy.

Katelyn Hartzell, a student at Defiance College, said, “I think these events are awesome. Everyone can learn about different cultures and appreciate everything and everyone.”

One event that is being put on this month is two movie nights. On Thursday, February 13, at 7:30 pm, Harriet was played at Schomburg Auditorium. An anonymous student from Defiance College who was at the showing of Harriet last Thursday said, “It was such a good movie. Everyone should see it.”

Harriet is a movie about the life and events of Harriet Tubman. The film has been nominated for 34 different awards, including 2 Oscars and has won 18. It is available for rent on most streaming services.

If you did not make it out to that movie night, there is another chance to view a movie on Wednesday, February 26, at 7:30 pm in Schomburg Auditorium. This time Just Mercy will be playing. This particular movie is being “co-sponsored…with the Library and Student Academic Support Services.”

It is currently still in theaters and follows the life of a lawyer, played by Micheal B. Jordan. He uses his law degree in fighting to correct the cases of black citizens who have been unjustly convicted of crimes and sentenced to jail.

Both movies premiered in theaters in 2019.

There have been emails sent out to all students and staff about this event, but for even more information, check out this website:

Throughout today’s generation of college students, a common enjoyable past-time that appears to be shared among the majority is watching streaming services, whether it be Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, or now, Disney Plus. Each of these programs charges viewers a monthly fee to gain access to a multitude of movies, shows, and documentaries. Even though each of the programs are watched by students on campus, not all of them are seen as worthy of equal praise.

Ever since its creation, Netflix has prospered to be one of the most well-known streaming services. With a monthly fee starting at only $9.00 a month, Netflix is undeniably an affordable option for college students. In fact, Netflix appears to be extremely popular amongst students at Defiance College in comparison to the other options. Many of those who are users of Netflix, admitted to having tried Hulu and Amazon only to later revert back to Netflix. One student stated that “with Netflix, you get more for your money.”

Aside from Netflix, another popular streaming service is Hulu. Like Netflix, viewers have access to a variety of showings. However, with Hulu, starting at around $7.00, subscribers are only able to watch a portion of movies and shows, unless they purchase “add-on” packages. This can be a concern for college students who don’t always have the means to make such purchases. Although, several have claimed that Hulu is worth it, given that Hulu provides episodes within several days of when they first air on TV, whereas Netflix doesn’t add them until around a year later.

Amazon Prime is yet another option for streaming. A Prime subscription costs around $9.00, but one special feature offered by Amazon is the prime student discount, making the required payment only $6.49 monthly. With their Prime membership, users have access to a gallery of free movies and shows, however, they also have access to plenty of other options if they choose to pay for that movie or show.

The newest streaming platform to spark interest is Disney Plus. For about $7.00 per month, Disney Plus provides its viewers with nearly every Disney classic one can imagine–from Bambi to Hannah Montana. This source of streaming is least common among students on campus because it was just released and not many have made the purchase yet. However, several students have described it as “well worth the money,” and an “obsession.” Unlike the other streaming programs, Disney Plus showcases the childhood nostalgia that today’s generation of students knows and loves, which is what makes those who have it extremely fond of it.

A vast amount of the students on campus use at least one, if not more of these streaming services. However, more appear to favor Netflix over other options.

Students have shared that they are more satisfied with the selections available on Netflix and appreciate the fact that the monthly rate of $9.00 grants them access to the entirety of what Netflix has available. Several, who have tried one or more streaming sources, also agree with this statement.

Regardless of which type of streaming service one prefers, it is evident that the quality of each of these programs is promising, especially to the students here at Defiance College.

From April 1972. DC students are playing games with
children in a classroom in St. John UCC. Dig the groovy striped
bell-bottoms!

Homecoming attendant Phyllis Connor in 1982

Students dressed to the nines for the 1998 Spring Formal

Danielle Grissom's senior yearbook photo, 2001

I recently met with Barb Sedlock, Lead Librarian, and Coordinator of Metadata and Archives. She provided The Defender some neat photos of different fashions from the late 1800s to early 2000s for your viewing pleasure.

To see more of these types of photos and other DC history-related content, head over to The Women’s Commission Gallery to look at the new exhibit called “115 Years of Service and Support – A Special Tribute to The Women’s Commission of Defiance College.”

From October 11th till November 15th, DC students can visit The Women’s Commission Gallery to view “sampling of newspaper clippings, photographs, and documents” about the college.

Teaming up with Barb Sedlock was Assistant Professor of Design Beverly Fanning. They combined forces to create this exhibit.

The Gallery is open Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Women’s Commission Gallery is located on the DC campus off Sessions Street. Entry through Dana Hall or the Art Gallery is recommended.

What do you get when you mix three different artists and two different genres of music? The answer; The World War Joy Tour featuring Lennon Stella, 5 Seconds of Summer (5SOS), and The Chainsmokers.

The concert was worth seeing. When the tour was first announced, there was skepticism, and an unsure sense of how combining two completely different genres of music with two different fan bases would work.

However, the energy in the arena was very present. All artists did a great job of engaging the audience, making the night one to remember.

The idea for the tour first came from The Chainsmokers, a popular-EDM (Electric Dance Music) production duo made up of members Andrew “Drew” Taggart and Alex Pall. The pair first rose to fame with the release of their first hit single, “#SELFIE.”

Since the release of “#SELFIE,” the duo has collaborated with several artists on hit singles such as “Closer” featuring Halsey and “Who Do You Love?” featuring Australian pop-rock, 4-piece, 5SOS. Following their collaboration with 5SOS, the duo planned to release their newest album, World War Joy. This sparked the idea of a tour in which, 5SOS and Lennon Stella became included. 5SOS became a co-headliner. Throughout the 41-show long tour, the duo continues to translate their act from DJs to live music performances.

The show kicked off with an opening artist, Lennon Stella. Stella’s genre is also EDM meaning that her performance was similar to The Chainsmokers. A drummer and a DJ joined Stella onstage as she jumped and jogged around, trying to get the audience engaged and warmed up for the rest of the night.

Visual aids were heavily present on the screens above her set, constantly flashing and changing colors for each song. Stella performed a total of 8 songs. She opened with “Breakaway,” a song off of her second EP, and concluded with “La Di Da,” a song that has been streamed over 75 million times on Spotify.

Following Stella’s performance, 5SOS took the stage, and the audience erupted.

A visual aid of each band member’s logos appeared on the screens throughout the arena. The group opened with their very first hit single, “She Looks So Perfect.” The atmosphere was loud and crazy; the audience got into their performance.

The members of 5SOS worked the stage extremely well, considering that they play their instruments. Drummer, Ashton Irwin, created a smooth transition from “She Looks So Perfect” to “More,” a fan favorite off of their latest album, “Youngblood.” The group performed a total of 16 songs, ending their performance with “Teeth,” “Want You Back,” and “Youngblood.”

The dimming of the lights and the display of the World War Joy logo on the big screens had signified the moment the audience had been waiting for: The Chainsmokers.

Drummer, Matt McGuire, took the stage holding torches. Smoke and warm-colored lighting engulfed the scene. Each member took their spots on stage and kicked off their set with “Takeaway,” a track featuring opener, Lennon Stella.

Concluding “Takeaway,” an EDM drum performance took the stage and then transitioned into 2015 hit, “Roses.” The performance included different pyro releases, drum solos, and smooth transitions.

Halfway through the set, the duo brought back out Luke Hemmings, the lead singer from 5SOS, to perform “Who Do You Love.” This onstage collaboration brought both groups of fans together, something that usually doesn’t happen.

Post Malone is undoubtedly one of the most popular and successful musicians of our generation. His music has topped the Billboard charts the past three years with hit singles playing consistently on the radio and streaming services. On September 6th, 2019, Post dropped his third studio album, Hollywood’s Bleeding. The collection features 17 songs, comparable to his other records.

Arguably, Hollywood’s Bleeding is his best work thus far. On this album, we get a “softer” version of his music. Post’s vocals range from his traditional raspy tone, a softer pitch, and a smoky howling voice. With the diversity in his vocals, changing from song to song makes the form of the album more attractive to fans. Post also has begun to use a soprano in a few tracks like “Allergic” and “A Thousand Bad Times.” “Allergic” features some alternative rock influences, similar to songs written and produced in the early 2000s, helping it to stand out from traditional-sounding Posty creations.

The album opens with the title track “Hollywood’s Bleeding.” The song discusses how rough the Hollywood lifestyle can be and offers us an insight into how Post feels about his lifestyle and the world around us. Other tracks like “Internet” provide us with insight into how Post thinks about how the internet has impacted our daily lives.

Other tracks like “Circles,” “Goodbyes (Feat. Young Thug), and “A Thousand Bad Times” discuss everyday challenges. The chill vibes of the tracks, from Hollywood’s Bleeding, are expected to be fan favorites.
Hollywood’s Bleeding also features an astronomical number of celebrity features including SZA, Meek Mill, Young Thug, Halsey, DaBaby, Travis Scott and even Ozzy Osbourne. Coming as a shock to most fans, Ozzy Osbourne is by far the most unique of the collaborations. Osbourne was Black Sabbath’s lead singer in the ’70s.

Osbourne and Scott are both features on “Take What You Want.” This track discusses wanting to be released by a toxic relationship. The mixture of artists on this track makes it one of Post’s most unique and different sounding songs.

The range of his vocals, diversity in the album’s features, and range of beats and influences make it stand out from his other work.

Students can listen to Post’s new album online using Spotify, Amazon Music, iTunes, or most streaming services.

Post also has a specialty line of Crocs and runs a music festival, PostyFest.

People tend to look negatively upon sequels, especially animated sequels as being
inferior to the original product. This isn’t without reason, as sequels are often pushed out the
door with far less thought and effort then the movies that spawned them, with executives
attempting to milk as much viewership out of the product’s reputation as they can. The reason I
believe this is so often been a problem with animated films is because of how animation is
believed to be for children, and children make for such a rich demographic who are seen as
willing to eat anything up without questioning its quality.

Even though I disagree with this viewpoint, whenever I think of an animated movie I
liked growing up, I have to question my own judgement about whether it was really as good as I
remember or if it will fail to stand the test of time. One such movie I remember very fondly,
which happens to also be a sequel, is Balto: Wolf Quest. I actually grew up with the sequel movie
rather than the original, which I didn’t see until I was an adult. I decided to do a bit of a
throwback review this week for a sequel I still believe, even after watching it earlier this week,
gets far less credit then it deserves.

Balto, the original movie, deals with a straight-forward but heavily fictionalized version
of the historical wolf-dog and his heroic efforts to lead a sled team bringing medicine to the
people of Nome, Alaska. If I could compare it to anything, I’d have to draw a parallel between
this movie and Don Bluth’s Anastasia. Both movies feature historical figures and events that are
heavily distorted from how they actually happened, but still manage to thrill and entertain and
most importantly, tell a good story. That said, the first animated Balto movie is fairly par for the
course for what it is, and it might be hard to imagine that such a movie could lead to any quality
sequels without stretching its source material.

Balto: Wolf Quest almost certainly does stretch the material beyond belief, to the point
where the fabric gives way and the contents spill out in a completely original, unexpected
direction. The sequel movie stars the fictional daughter of Balto, Aleu, as she and her father
embark on the titular vision quest to discover her destiny. What makes this sequel unique is the
complete change in atmospherics from the original. Rather than being a colorful but down to
earth adaptation of a historical event, this movie plunges us straight into a mystical world of
ghostly creatures, strange dreams and even apparent magic. Eventually, Balto and Aleu find
themselves placed in charge of deciding the fate of a starving wolf pack, which will in turn help
decide Aleu’s true destiny.

This radical departure from the original story is ironically what saves this movie from
being just another lazy sequel. A description of all this may seem a bit strange for those only
familiar with the first film, but in motion it makes for a graceful, deeply spiritual adventure that’s
as much a journey of the heart as of the body. I was bizarrely transfixed by this movie as a child,
and I was pleasantly surprised to see that it still holds up even today. If you’re looking for a new
but old animated movie to watch with your children or even just for the sheer sake of watching
it, I highly recommend Balto: Wolf Quest as an example of an animated sequel done right.

Visuals

3.5/5. There’s some conspicuous CG here and there that hasn’t aged as well as the rest of
the movie, but at the same time there are parts of this movie where the animation is still stunning,
even eerie.

Story

5/5. The bold new direction that this sequel takes from its predecessor only does it favors,
as it manages to be compelling and atmospheric at the same time.

Voice Acting

3.5/5. Kevin Bacon does not reprise his original role as Balto here, his voice instead
being filled by career voice actor Maurice LaMarche, although the difference is hardly
noticeable! I was surprised that Aleu’s voice acting was much more grating then I remember as a
child, which is what prevents this from having a higher score.

This drama/documentary starring Tom Hanks (IMDB, 2016) as the titular character covers the real-life story of commercial airplane pilot Chesley Sullenberger. Based on the widely reported incident in 2009 where the pilot saved an entire plane full of passengers by choosing to land in the Hudson Bay, the film covers both the incident itself as well as the aftermath, showing how the media frenzy causes the pilot extreme emotional turmoil, and his struggles to prove that he made the right decision. While naturally slow-paced and perhaps not for everyone, this thoughtful biopic does well what it sets out to do and is immensely bolstered by the combined acting talent of Hanks & Eckhart.

While not visually groundbreaking, the movie does manage to incorporate a few brief but breathtaking CGI sequences which recreate the crash as well as a few alternate scenarios imagined by Hanks’ character. Great care was taken in establishing the realism of certain sets and locations around New York city, with some scenes of the plane crash being lifted directly from footage of the event itself. Due to the slower pacing, viewers may find themselves looking around the sets and picking out the carefully constructed details in the backgrounds.

The story of this movie is by far its strongest element. The film opts to only delve into the recreation of the event after first setting up Sully’s emotions during the aftermath. Graceful, reverent and down to earth with the topic its discussing, the movie’s story centers on a message about how human beings struggle and survive under pressure, but also how we can use our flexibility and ingenuity in order to overcome immense difficulties. Chesley Sullenburger struggles to deal with the media circus that erupts after he saves all of his passengers by landing a plane in the Hudson Bay after a bird strike. On top of this he suddenly finds himself risk of losing his license for possible misconduct with the way he handled the emergency. Ultimately, he must prove that it was his human element that allowed him to make the right decision in order to save his family, reputation and career.

Sully is certainly a very niche movie, even with two stellar actors as the main characters. While a dignified tribute to the source story that delivers on what it promises, the pacing can be tiringly slow with a few humorous or dramatic moments to break up what can feel like a movie much longer than it actually is. At the same time, I was impressed with the depths that the movie went to in order to ground itself firmly in the real of the events that it discussed, and how well a single message about human ability was carried throughout the entire movie. Instead of opting to pad out what could have been a full-length action movie focused completely on landing the plane safely, the filmmakers chose a more human perspective that dealt well with the consequences of suddenly being thrust from a regular life into fame and controversy. If anything, this is the factor that sets this movie apart from others like it, making it an honest look into a side of a story we’ve never heard.